Dear Valued Patient,
This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your protected health information to carry out treatment, payment and any other healthcare operations that are permitted or required by law.
Effective April 14th, 2003 The Secretary of Health and Human Services passed a new government rule and speculated new regulations regarding the Heath Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) with particular emphasis on the "Privacy Rule". It is our policy to properly determine appropriate use of Personal Health Information (PHI) in accordance with governmental rules, laws and regulations. Our office wants to ensure that our practice never contributes in anyway to the growing problem of improper disclosure of PHI.
By signing the consent you allow your dentist, his staff and others outside our office that may be involved in your care and treatment to use and disclose your PHI for treatment, payment and other healthcare operations. This also implies to others involved in your healthcare such as family, friends, or other persons you may identify that you request to be involved in your healthcare, emergencies or upon professional judgment by the dentist and substantial communication barriers involving the patient and the dentist.
When required by Law, Public Health, Communicable Diseases, Health Oversight, Abuse and Neglect, Legal Proceedings, Law Enforcement, Organ Donors, Funeral Directors, Military Activity, we may use or disclose your Protected Health Information without your consent or authorization.
At any time during your treatment you may refuse to sign the consent in which we may not use or disclose your PHI, we must ask that you state your reasoning in writing. Under this law, if you refuse to disclose your PHI, we have the right to refuse treatment to you. If consent was signed prior to determining refusal of PHI, you may not revoke actions that have already taken place in regards to disclosure of your PHI. At any time you as the patient have the right to request and receive information of certain disclosures of your PHI. At any time you as the patient have the right to request and receive information of certain disclosures we have made regarding your PHI as described in this Notice of Privacy Policy.
As a team we strive to achieve the very highest standards of ethics and integrity in providing service and care to our patients. It is in sincere regards to this plan and our policy to listen to our staff as well as our patients without any thought of penalization if they feel that in an event or instance we are compromising our policy of integrity. We most kindly welcome any input or questions you may have regarding our policy of integrity and want to thank you for being among our most highly valued patients.
Dr. Thomas A. Bowles